Gavh said 5 years ago 10/6/2006 4:50:13 AM EDT

We started with a tricky section and we are going to end with one All robots have to be taken apart, right? If they are to be repaired and all. The lines in-between the different panels are called shut lines. To create them we need to use the path tool. If you have never used the path tool before then you are going to have to read up about them because they are difficult to explain.

Start off by clicking Layers/New/Layer, and then click Ok. Now you need to draw the shut line paths. (1) Each one is done individually. Now select your brush and select a very thin nib size. Next select black from the swatches palette. (2) In the paths palette right click the path you created (which consists of all the individual paths you created, the shut lines) and click stroke path. Next make sure it is set on brush before hitting Ok. Once done your paths will be thin solid black lines. (3) Now go back to your layers palette and double click the layer you last created. Select Bevel & Emboss and open its properties. You now need to select the pillow emboss option under the style option. You might also have to change the direction of the lighting. You should now have the shut lines you are looking for. Click Ok to close the properties box. Don't forget to move the whisker layer above your shut line path layer so that it does not get overlapped by the shut lines...



(4) Lastly the screws. Mask the head of a screw then copy and paste it into the leopard picture. Duplicate it do that you have the desired number of screws, then move them into place.



(5) The last step is a small trick I left till last. In order to give the whiskers on the left some focal depth, you need to do the following: Select the left whiskers layer, and then mask a circle around the ends of it. Now feather that mask by about 25 pixels. Click Filters/Blur/Gaussian blur and set it to about 7 pixels. Hit Ok. The whiskers now look like they go out of focus making them look even more real. This is where I save the copy I have and flatten the image. I then save it under a new name. Now I go around looking for anything I need to fix up: soften edges, smudge away imperfection, darken/lighten parts etc.



So there you have it! One cyborgenic leopard. I hope this tutorial has helped you further your Photoshop skills. I also hope it was a worthwhile read because a lot of blood sweat and tears went into creating the picture and the tutorial!!